Shop-box



A. A. TUTTLE.

SHOP BOX.

APPLICATION FILED OCT-4,1919.

Patented Apr. 27, 1920.

F/ I J Atty.

UNITED STATES PAZIENT OFFICE.

ALPHEUS ALLEN TUTTLE, OF NEW BRITAIN, CONNECTICUT.

sHor-Box.

Application filed October 4,

To all whom it may concern I Be it known that I, ALPHEUS ALLEN TUTTLE, a citizen of the United States, residing at New Britain, in the county of Hartford and State of Connecticut, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Shop-Boxes, of which the following is a specification. v

My invention relates to improvements 1n shop boxes, of the form that is used in factories for the transportation of. material in various conditions and stages of production from one department to another, and the object of my improvement is to produce a shop box that is simple and economical to build and convenient and efiicient in use.

In the accompanying drawing Figure 1 is a side elevation of my improved shop box.

Fig. 2 is an end elevation of the same.

Fig. 3 is an isometric view of the skeleton metal frame structure and the bottom boards. in place.

Fig. 4 is a similar view of the same with the side boards also in place.

Fig. 5 shows the end boards in place in addition to the'bottom boards and the side boards that are shown in- Fig. 4.

Fig. 6 is an isometric View on an enlarged scale of the completed box, with the handle members in place.

Fig. 7, is a sectional view on the line 7-7 ofFig.2.

My improved shop box comprises a skeleton frame structure 10 that is made of angle iron and in which the said angle iron is so disposed as to form a border along each and every edge and corner, the box'being of recs tangular form of cross-section, the angle iron being constructed and arranged to provide suitable seats and positioning means for the filling material, and the said filling material consisting of boards that are cut and fitted in a special manner and are also held in place in a special manner, the use of nails or screws being unnecessary for holding together the main box structure itself. By the addition of handle strips 11 at the ends, which may be held to the end boards 12 by screws 13, as shown, a positive lock is providedfor locking the parts together, as will be described. 1

Thus, at the top of the boX structure there are two'angle ironpieces 14 extending longitudinally along the side edges and these are connected at the ends by cross-connecting angle iron end pieces 15 that are posi-.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 27, 1920.

1919. Serial No. 328,503.

tioned along the top edges at the ends of the box structure, the angle iron being so disposed as to form a corner seat for the end corner or edge corner of the filling boards that are seated therein, as the case may be.

At the bottom there is a border frame structure that is the counterpart of that at the top, composed of longitudinally disposed angle iron pieces 14 that are crossconnected by the angle iron pieces 15 at the ends.

The pieces 14 and 15, accordingly, serve to compose the parts of the skeleton frame structure 10 at the top and bottom edges, both at the sides and at the ends, and which edges are normally horizontal, as the box rests on the floor.

The top and bottom border frame structures are interconnected by the angle iron pieces 16 that'are positioned along the vertical corners at the ends and which serve as corner seats for the filling material, and serve to complete the skeleton frame structure proper. I

As the box is appreciably greater in length than in width, I find it desirable to provided vertical cross-connecting reinforc- :ing pieces at the sides, as shown at 17, that serve to interconnect the top and bottom longitudinal angle iron pieces 14. The filling material comprises boards of suitable size to fill the bottom, sides, and ends, constructed and arranged as follows The bottom is composed of a plurality of bottom boards 18 arranged to fill the space inclosed by the bottom pieces.14 and 15, and these are put in placefirst in assembling the parts. The sides may be composed'of a single side board 1901 may be made up of a plurality of boards, and these fill in space at the sides that is bordered by the top angle piece 14 at the top, the vertical corner pieces 16 at the ends, and the bottom boards 18 at the bottom. Thus the side pieces or boards 19 serve to lock bottom 18 in place in the skeleton frame structure 10 at the sides. The side 19 when composed of a plurality of boards is made up with the said boards longitudinally directed, so that the ends of the boards are seated in the vertical angle pieces 16, in order that these may be properly locked in place by the end boards 20.

The said end boards 20 may consist individually of relatively narrow pieces, the end structure being composed of a plurality of such pieces, arranged vertically, the upper ends being seated in the upper end angle pieces 15 and the lower ends being in abutment with the bottom 18, the entire end space between the side boards 19 being filled in, Thus the side boards 19 have their ends opposed to the adjacent end boards 20 and are thereby held in place.

Thus the end boards 20 serve as the final or key elements for letting the parts together, and I find that by making the end boards 20 a good fit, so that pressure has to be applied to force them in place the box stru ture is held together generally Without other holding means.

In addition, however, positive locking 'means may be provided, and as some form of handle at the ends of boxes of the character under consideration is commonly provided I find it advantageous to provide a handle element 11 in the form of a strip of wood or cleat so constructed and arranged as to serve in addition to the handle feature as such positive means for locking the filling pieces in the skeleton frame. This result is attained by making the handle strips 11 of suitable length to extend entirely across the end wall of the box structure and positioning the strip in each case so as to be at any convenient position between the end angle irons 15 and with the tip ends of the strip 11 overlapping the vertical corner irons 16. A screw 13 or nail or other securing means serves to hold the strip 11 in place and each individual end board 20 is preferably secured to the corresponding strip 11.

The handle strip or cleat 11 may be undercut, as shown, at 21 on the side adjacent the end boards 20, in order to provide a recess suitable for receiving the ends of the fingers in lifting the box or to receive the end of a hook for dragging the box along the floor.

In order, furthermore, to provide clearance along the bottom for the bottom angle irons 1 1 and 15, so that the box structure will positively rest on the bottom boards and thereby avoid obstruction to such dragging by any joints or rivets in the metal frame structure, and also to facilitate stacking of the boxes one upon the other I provide a rabbet 22 on the lower face of the bottom 18 along the edge portion, on all four sides, for housing the opposed bottom, horizontal side or strip portion 23 of the bottom angle irons 14 and 15. Thus the bottom face 24 of the bottom 18 projects downwardly below the said border angle iron pieces 14 and 15. The box, constructed as described, is strong and substantial, and is adapted to obviate the breakage or to materially reduce such breakage as is now experienced with boxes of ordinary construction.

By applying a suitable cover the box is adapted for use as a returnable box for merchandise, such as butter, bottles, and other goods, and is adaptable for other uses where a strong and substantial structure is desired.

As mentioned, the box structure described is of rectangular form and of appreciably greater length than width, being substantially twice as long as it is wide. The primary use being as a shop box, one of the requirements that must be met is that it must be adapted for being dragged along the floor by means of a hook engaged with the handles at the ends. In order to provide a proper contact surface at the bottom, that is best adapted to being dragged, as mentioned, is to dispose the bottom boards longitudinally, as is done in the case of ordinary shop boxes in common use. Such an arrangement of the bottom boards is permitted in the present structure by reason of the use of angle iron pieces for the end cross pieces 15 at the bottom, so as to provide a corner seat for the end corners of the bottom boards 18, suitable for supporting and positioning the said bottom boards 18 and hold them in position without nails or screws.

I claim as my invention 1. A shop box of rectangular form comprising a skeleton frame structure made of angle iron and filling material in the form of boards for the bottom, sides, and ends,

constructed and arranged for the said filling material to be assembled in the said frame structure in the order named and so that the boards for the ends serve to lock the other boards in place, and the said frame structure comprising at the ends at the bottom cross members of angle iron, suitably to serve as seats for the ends of longitudinally disposed boards for the bottom.

2. A shop box structure comprising a skeleton frame structure made of angle iron, filling material in the form of boards for the bottom, for the sides, and for the ends, constructed and arranged to be assembled in the order named and having the boards for the ends adapted to serve aslocking members for locking the parts in position, and having auxiliary locking means in the form of handle strips secured to the said end boards and with the adjacent angle iron portion interposed between the ends of the said strips and the end board structure.

3. A shop box structure comprising a skeleton frame structure made of angle iron, filling material in the form of boards for the bottom, for the sides, and for the ends, constructed and arranged to be assembled in the order named and having the boards for the ends adapted to serve as locking members for locking the parts in position, and having the edge portion of the bottom structure rabbeted for providing a seat above the bottom face of the said bottom structure for housing the cooperating portion of the skeleton frame structure.

ALPHEUS ALLEN'TUTTLE. 

